BILL ANALYSIS Ó
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|SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 612|
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THIRD READING
Bill No: SB 612
Author: Steinberg (D), et al
Amended: 5/4/11
Vote: 21
SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE : 8-2, 4/27/11
AYES: Lowenthal, Alquist, Hancock, Huff, Liu, Price,
Simitian, Vargas
NOES: Runner, Blakeslee
NO VOTE RECORDED: Vacancy
SENATE APPROPRIATIONS COMMITTEE : 6-2, 5/26/11
AYES: Kehoe, Alquist, Lieu, Pavley, Price, Steinberg
NOES: Walters, Runner
NO VOTE RECORDED: Emmerson
SUBJECT : Teacher Professional Development: Subject
Matter Projects
SOURCE : University of California
DIGEST : This bill authorizes the establishment of three
additional California Subject Matter Projects, deletes the
sunset date on existing projects, adds new areas of
emphasis for subject matter projects, and makes various
changes to the concurrence committee and project advisory
boards.
ANALYSIS : Existing law provides for the establishment
and maintenance of six California Subject Matter Projects
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(CSMP) for the purpose of developing and enhancing
teachers' subject matter knowledge and pedagogical skills.
Current law authorizes the following subject matter
projects:
1.The California Writing Project.
2.The California Reading and Literature Project.
3.The California Mathematics Project.
4.The California Science Project.
5.The California History-Social Science Project.
6.The World History and International Studies project.
Existing law authorizes the University of California (UC)
to establish other subject matter projects and specifies
that no funds allocated in the annual Budget Act shall be
used for subject matter projects in subjects not
specifically authorized in statute.
Existing law requires the Regents of the UC, with the
approval of an intersegmental Concurrence Committee, to
establish and maintain the projects and specifies the
composition of the concurrence committee to be
representatives of the various segments of education.
Existing law requires the advisory board of each subject
matter project to use specified criteria in recommending
funding for local project sites.
Existing law makes the CSMP inoperative on June 30, 2012,
and repeals the authorizing statute on January 1, 2013,
unless a later enacted statute deletes or extends those
dates.
This bill:
1.Makes findings and declarations about the high dropout
rate in California high schools; the need for an
educated workforce, the value of schools offering a more
integrated approach to learning, and declares that
investments in delivering to pupils the skills and
knowledge needed for further education and employment in
California's high-growth, high-demand industries are
investments in the growth of a knowledge-intensive,
innovative economy.
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2.Makes further findings and declarations about the role
and purpose of the CSMP as a statewide network of
subject-specific professional development programs and
how the CSMP infrastructure may be leveraged to align
middle and high school curricula more closely to the
needs of growing and emerging sectors of the California
economy by providing teachers with the supports and
tools necessary to deliver career-oriented, integrated
academic and technical education content.
3.Adds two new areas of emphasis for CSMP to provide
teachers with:
A. Instructional strategies for delivering
career-oriented, integrated academic and technical
content in a manner that is linked to high priority
industry sectors identified in the California Career
Technical Education Model Curriculum Standards as
adopted by the State Board of Education (SBE).
Requires the CSMP Concurrence Committee, in
consultation with the appropriate state entities,
industry leaders, and representatives of organized
labor, educators, and other parties, to determine the
priority of the industry sectors.
B. Instructional strategies for ongoing collaboration
on the delivery of career-oriented, integrated
academic and technical education content.
4.Clarifies that the CSMP provide support to teachers to
develop and enhance content knowledge and pedagogical
skills necessary to implement the state adopted content
standards or curriculum frameworks or any subsequently
adopted standards or curriculum frameworks.
5.Requires the CSMP Concurrence Committee, beginning
January 1, 2016, and every three years thereafter, to
provide a report, as specified, on the subject matter
projects to the Governor and to appropriate policy and
fiscal committees of the Legislature. Makes the
reporting requirement inoperative on January 1, 2020,
pursuant to the Government Code.
6.Modifies the composition of the nine-member CSMP
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Concurrence Committee by reducing the number of
representatives selected by the SBE from two to one; and
by adding a representative selected by the
Superintendent of Public Instruction (SPI).
7.Requires the CSMP, in partnership with the University of
California Curriculum Integration Institute or other
appropriate entities, to provide teachers with support
in the implementation of career-oriented, integrated
academic and technical courses that meet course
requirements for admission to UC, the California State
University (CSU), and align with high-priority industry
sectors as specified.
8.Adds the following projects to the list of authorized
subject matter projects:
A. The California Physical Education-Health Project.
B. The California Arts Project.
C. The California World Language Project.
9.Deletes the inoperative and repeal dates, thereby
extending the operation of these provisions
indefinitely.
10.Modifies the composition of project advisory boards for
each subject matter project by reducing from two to one,
representatives selected by the UC, CSU, SPI, and SBE
such that the new composition of each advisory board is
as follows:
A. One representative selected by the California
Postsecondary Education Committee.
B. One representative, selected by the President of
the UC, who is a member of the faculty in the
discipline addressed by the project.
C. One representative, selected by the Chancellor of
the CSU, who is a member of the faculty in the
discipline addressed by the project.
D. One representative, selected by the SPI, who is a
classroom teacher in the subject area addressed by
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the project.
E. One representative, selected by the SBE, who is a
classroom teacher in the subject area addressed by
the project.
F. One representative selected by the Governor.
G. One representative selected by the Commission on
Teacher Credentialing.
H. One representative of a statewide professional
organization of teachers in the subject matter
addressed by the project, as specified.
I. One representative of the California Community
Colleges, selected by the Chancellor, who is a
faculty member in the subject matter addressed by the
project.
J. One representatives of an independent
postsecondary institution selected by the Association
of Independent California Colleges and Universities
(AICCU), who is a member of the in the discipline
addressed by the project.
K. One representative who is from an industry sector
that principally utilizes the discipline addressed by
the project and who is selected by the advisory
board.
11.Adds high pupil drop-out rates to the criteria each
project advisory board must use in recommending funding
for local project sites.
12.Specifies that for purposes of recommending funding for
local project sites that serve middle or high school
teachers, the project advisory board shall give special
consideration to sites that utilize or are preparing to
utilize instructional strategies to deliver
career-oriented, integrated academic and technical
content.
Comments
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California Subject Matter Projects . The CSMP provides
intensive, content-rich and discipline-based professional
development designed to develop and enhance teachers'
content knowledge and instructional strategies for the
purpose of improving student learning and academic
performance as measured against the state's K-12 academic
content standards. In addition, the CSMP provide teachers
with instructional strategies for working with English
learners and help teachers use research and data to improve
student learning and achievement. In addition to the six
subject matter projects authorized in statute, the UC has
established and maintains three additional projects in art,
physical education-health, and foreign languages.
Together, the nine projects serve over 800 school districts
and close to 100 sites statewide on campuses of the UC,
CSU, and independent colleges and universities. According
to the UC, the projects served 94,703 teachers,
administrators, and university faculty from 2006 to 2010.
Background . Prior to 1998, the Education Code provided for
the establishment and maintenance of subject matter
projects in each subject area of teachers in the public
schools and established priority for funding according to
subjects required for high school graduation and subjects
that coincided with state curriculum initiatives. With the
adoption of K-12 academic content standards in the late
1990s, the state narrowed the focus of the CSMP to the core
content areas of English language Arts, mathematics,
science, and history-social science. AB 1734 (Mazzoni),
Chapter 333, Statutes of 1998, authorized the six projects
currently specified in Education Code and authorized the UC
to establish additional subject matter projects, but
prohibited those projects from receiving funding in the
annual budget act. Subsequent legislation expressed
legislative intent that maintenance-level funding be
provided for projects in academic fields seeking standards
approval from the SBE. Although the SBE has adopted K-12
academic content standards in visual and performing arts
(2001), physical education (2005), health education (2008),
and world languages (2009), legislative attempts to
authorize these subject areas in statute have been
unsuccessful. While authorizing these three additional
subject matter projects could create cost pressure to
provide maintenance-level funding, it could be argued that
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authorizing them in statute will make it easier for the UC
to successfully compete for foundation funding to provide
additional support for the projects and will provide a
formal recognition that all nine subject areas are included
in the course of study undertaken by middle school and high
school students and represent the content standards adopted
by the SBE.
Career-oriented, Integrated Academic and Technical Content .
In recent years, many high schools have established
partnership academies, career-themed small learning
communities, and other programs that integrate academic
coursework with applied learning opportunities.
Additionally, many schools and regional occupational
centers/programs have worked to increase the rigor of
career technical education courses to ensure that these
courses prepare students for more options following high
school. The goal of these programs is to provide students
with rigorous, relevant learning opportunities that link
what we expect them to know when they leave high school
with the skills necessary to follow a chosen career
pathway.
Pursuant to AB 2648 (Bass), Chapter 681, Statutes of 2008,
the CDE submitted a report to the Governor and the
Legislature in 2010, that explores the feasibility of
establishing and expanding additional high school programs
that prepare students to be successful in their chosen
pathways after high school. The AB 2648 Multiple Pathways
to Student Success Report suggests that teachers in linked
learning programs "need to have competencies in four
domains: knowledge, pedagogy, professional skills, and
foundational comprehension. Teachers need knowledge of the
academic concepts that underlie work in industries,
intellectual skills to solve problems in the real world,
and must know how to work in a community of practice." The
report also noted that teachers need pedagogical skills
specific to engaging engage students in project-based and
cooperative learning, building on students' prior knowledge
and skills, and using multiple assessment measures and ways
for students to demonstrate their competencies. Teachers
must have appropriate professional skills that equip them
to work in pathway settings and collaborate with other
teachers and industry partners. By expanding the emphasis
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of the CSMP to include providing teachers with
instructional strategies to deliver career-oriented
integrated academic and technical content and by providing
teachers with strategies for ongoing collaboration in the
delivery of that content, this bill will enable the CSMP to
help teachers working in these programs and could enable
teachers of traditional academic courses incorporate
real-world examples and applied learning opportunities into
their day-to-day instruction.
Time to Eliminate the Sunset ? The Legislature established
the CSMP in 1988 and the projects have been providing
professional development to teachers continuously since
that time. The CSMP serves as a model of intersegmental
collaboration in the delivery of content-rich professional
development that has helped develop teacher leaders in
schools. The unique adaptable structure of the CSMP has
enabled the projects to help schools implement state
academic content standards and respond to priorities
established by the No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB) while
maintaining a strong focus on teachers with the most need
of support: those in low-performing schools and those
working English learners. According to a 2005 evaluation
of the CSMP conducted by SRI International, teachers
reported that the CSMP influenced their instruction more
than other professional development and contributed to
improvements in student learning. Case study evidence
gathered by SRI further suggests that when these changes
influence teaching practice across departments or grade
levels, schools have observed increases in student
achievement and made progress in closing the achievement
gap, especially for English learners. Given the positive
evaluations associated with this long-established program
and the fiscal control the Legislature has over its
funding, deleting the sunset date appears to pose little
policy risk to the state.
The 2010-11 Budget Act allocates $9.35 million in state and
federal funding to support the six existing CSMPs. ($4.35
million is federal funding and $5.0 million in non-98
General Funds.) Since the newly authorized projects could
be allocated funds from the annual Budget Act, this bill
could create cost pressure to increase funding for the
CSMP. Funding for CSMP in 2011-12 includes $5 million in
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General Funds and $5.758 million in federal funds.
Related and Prior Legislation
SB 199 (Ducheny), 2009-10 Session, would have authorized
the establishment of subject matter projects in arts,
physical education and health, and foreign languages,
deleted the sunset date for CSMP and authorized projects to
provide assistance to teachers providing instruction in
integrated academic and career technical education
programs. (Held in Senate Appropriations Committee)
SB 232 (Ducheny), Chapter 292, Statutes of 2007, required
the Concurrence Committee to report to the Governor and the
Legislature on specified elements of the CSMP and would
have also authorized the establishment of subject matter
projects in arts, physical education and health, and
foreign languages. Passed the Senate with a vote of 37-1
on September 11, 2007.
SB 1073 (Simitian), 2005-06 Session, would have added the
California Arts Project, the California Foreign Language
Project, and the California Physical Education-Health
Project to the subject matter projects already created by
law. Passed the Senate with a vote of 26-8 on May 31,
2005. (Held in Assembly Appropriations Committee)
AB 108 (Mazzoni), 1999-2000 Session, would have, among
other things, authorized the California Arts Project, the
California Foreign Language Project, and the California
Physical Education-Health Project to the statewide subject
matter projects. Passed the Senate with a vote of 25-8 on
August 31, 2000. The bill was subsequently vetoed by
Governor Gray Davis who opined that the highest priority
for the use of state funds should be to support the
existing subject matter projects aimed at improving student
academic performance in English, mathematics, science, and
the social sciences.
FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: Yes
Local: No
Fiscal Impact (in thousands)
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Major Provisions 2011-12 2012-13
2013-14 Fund
Repeals CSMP Cost pressure; $6,000-$7,000
annually General
sunset
Expands CSMP areas $900 $1,800
$1,800 General
SUPPORT : (Verified 5/27/11)
University of California (source)
Association of Independent California Colleges and
Universities
California Alliance for Arts Education
California Art Education Association
California Association for Health, Physical Education,
Recreation and Dance
California Association for Bilingual Education
California Association of Leaders for Career Preparation
California Association for Music Education
California Language Teachers Association
California Teachers Association
California State University Sacramento Teacher Ed
Department
Californians Together
Genentech
Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce
Los Angeles Unified School District
Magnolia School District
Orange County Department of Education
San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools
San Diego County Office of Education
San Diego Unified School District
San Francisco Unified School District
Temecula Valley Unified School District
Vista Del Lago High CTE/VPA Teachers
ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author's office,
"A stronger and more integrated approach to learning - one
that combines rigorous academics with career education -
can engage and motivate students who are at risk of
dropping out and can create more options for them after
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high school, whether they choose college or career."
The California Alliance for Arts Education and the
California Association for Health, Physical education,
Recreation and Dance believe that this bill will strengthen
the focus of the CSMP by including professional development
focused on career-oriented, integrated academic and
technical content, and as a result, the long term education
goals of all students will be enriched and better met.
CPM:cm 5/27/11 Senate Floor Analyses
SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE
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